dage on his left arm) and would have gone through my neck had
I not stooped. They were charging at the double then, and were upon us
with short swords almost as soon as their javelins. When a man is close
to you with such a sword, you can do nothing with our weapons: they are
all too long.

THE PERSIAN. What did you do?

BEL AFFRIS. Doubled my fist and smote my Roman on the sharpness of his
jaw. He was but mortal after all: he lay down in a stupor; and I took
his sword and laid it on. (Drawing the sword) Lo! a Roman sword with
Roman blood on it!

THE GUARDSMEN (approvingly). Good! (They take the sword and hand it
round, examining it curiously.)

THE PERSIAN. And your men?

BEL AFFRIS. Fled. Scattered like sheep.

BELZANOR (furiously). The cowardly slaves! Leaving the descendants of
the gods to be butchered!

BEL AFFRIS (with acid coolness). The descendants of the gods did not
stay to be butchered, cousin. The battle was not to the strong; but the
race was to the swift. The Romans, who have no chariots, sent a cloud of
horsemen in pursuit, and slew multitudes. Then our high priest's captain
rallied a dozen descendants of the gods and exhorted us to die fighting.
I said to myself: surely it is safer to stand than to lose my breath
and be stabbed in the back; so I joined our captain and stood. Then the
Romans treated us with respect; for no man attacks a lion when the field
is full of sheep, except for the pride and honor of war, of which these
Romans know nothing. So we escaped with our lives; and I am come to warn
you that you must open your gates to Caesar; for his advance guard is
scarce an hour behind me; and not an Egyptian warrior is left standing
between you and his legions.

THE SENTINEL. Woe, alas! (He throws down his javelin and flies into the
palace.)

BELZANOR. Nail him to the door, quick! (The guardsmen rush for him with
their spears; but he is too quick for them.) Now this news will run
through the palace like fire through stubble.

BEL AFFRIS. What shall we do to save the women from the Romans?

BELZANOR. Why not kill them?

PERSIAN. Because we should have to pay blood money for some of them.
Better let the Romans kill them: it is cheaper.

BELZANOR (awestruck at his brain power). O subtle one! O serpent!

BEL AFFRIS. But your Queen?

BELZANOR. True: we must carry off Cleopatra.

BEL AFFRIS. Will ye not await her command?

BELZANOR. Command! A girl of sixteen! Not we. At Memphis ye dee